FONTANA, Calif. -- They tore down the iconic water tower anchoring the infield of Auto Club Speedway during the offseason. It's a shame because the decades-old relic was the last vestige of the Kaiser Steel Mill wasteland, whose decrepit remains somehow birthed a pristine palace for racing.

But this is a track whose image and reputation have undergone so many makeovers, a Beverly Hills plastic surgery clinic is better suited for its naming rights than a company synonymous with the region's ubiquitous car culture.

No track has epitomized stock-car racing's undulating fortunes so completely over the past 20 years.

Yet no track is more reflective of how the sport wants to stake its claim to a rebirth.

This is no longer the uber chic 2-mile oval that had original owner Roger Penske dreaming about future crowds of 250,000 and drivers gushing about state-of-the-art amenities before its June 22, 1997 grand opening. In a felicitous christening that signified the circuit's evolving mainstream appeal, California native Jeff Gordon won the inaugural race – the first visit to Southern California by NASCAR's premier series in almost a decade. There wasn't an available seat for the first eight Cup events at a track whose season ticket waiting list peaked at 20,000.

This also is no longer the most maligned speedway in Sprint Cup, an easy punching bag for everything wrong about the ill-fated "Realignment 2004." That project stifled NASCAR's Southern accent and alienated longtime fans who cherished nail-biting races at Rockingham, N.C., and Labor Day weekends in Darlington, S.C. The traditions' demises were linked to Fontana, which has had empty seats — sometimes vast swaths — in its 90,000-seat grandstands since adding a second race just before NASCAR's attendance boom went bust.

But as NASCAR desperately searches for an antidote to processional-style racing at the eight 1.5-mile ovals that comprise the bulk of the 36-race schedule, Auto Club Speedway has emerged as a surprising gold standard for superspeedways — a pleasant twist for a place finally meeting some staggering expectations.

Last season's race was the best of the 2013 season, a beguiling show of fender banging and flared tempers typically seen only at short tracks but becoming increasingly common at Fontana.

Two of its last three events have produced last-lap passes for the lead (the third was cut short by rain) as its abrasive surface has become a rubber-shredding monster reminiscent of Rockingham, producing the tire wear and speed disparity that engenders the passing once sorely lacking here.

VIDEO: Watch highlights from the 2013 Auto Club 400

In its first decade, Auto Club Speedway produced numerous snoozers that resulted in constant tinkering to overcome the lack of action through clever marketing and scheduling sleight of hand.

There were failed attempts to become a paparazzi magnet by catering to the beautiful people on the west side of Los Angeles with Hollywood touches (adding spotlights to the track logo and draping the water tower with flashing neon). There were doomed forays with constant reshuffling of its dates (eventually resulting in downsizing back to one race in 2011).

But it eventually got one thing right — the racing — by simply staying the course. While 13 of 23 tracks laid fresh coats of asphalt (many driven by fears of reprising the pothole debacle in the 2010 Daytona 500) and struggled with the resultant lightning-fast, one-groove layouts on pavement that doesn't age quickly enough, Fontana's weathered surface hasn't been touched over the past 17 years as its status slowly has been burnished.

Gordon, who complained eight years ago after an Auto Club race that "there's no passing; it's just really difficult to put on a good race here," now is among its greatest champions.

"It's all about the pavement aging and degrading," Gordon told USA TODAY Sports recently. "It's taken a number of years, but now if you run one lap on the tires, they're shot.

"The racing wasn't great the first couple of years, but now it's amazing. There are so many lanes, so many options. We can do all kinds of things to create passing opportunities."

All that's missing in Sunday's Auto Club 400 will be the beloved water tower, which was deemed structurally unsafe by several engineering firms.

Of course, its disappearance has a silver lining — slightly improved sightlines to the backstretch.

Gordon, second from right, poses with daughter Ella Sofia, crew chief Alan Gustafson and the rest of his crew after finishing second in qualifying for the 2013 Daytona 500 on Feb 17.
Kevin Liles, USA TODAY Sports

Gordon won two races in 2012, including the Sprint Cup season finale at Homestead on Nov 18. Gordon finished 10th in the Sprint Cup standings, his lowest finish since 2005.
Douglas Jones, USA TODAY Sports

Gordon talks to his daughter Ella Sophia before an April 10, 2010 race at Phoenix. Gordon failed to win a race for the third time since his rookie year in 1993 and finished ninth in the standings.
Tom Pennington, Getty Images for NASCAR

Gordon celebrates in victory lane with a pair of pistols after winning the Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 5, 2009. It was Gordon's lone victory of the season. He finished third in the Sprint Cup standings.
Tony Gutierrez, AP

Gordon, shown here with a blown tire at the race at Michigan on Aug. 17, 2008, failed to win a Cup race for the first time since his rookie year in 1993. Gordon finished seventh in the standings.
Bob Brodbeck, AP

Gordon and girlfriend Ingrid Vandebosch arrive for the premiere of the Disney/Pixar animated film "Cars" at Lowe's Motor Speedway on May 26, 2006. The pair would get married in a private ceremony later in the year.
Terry Renna, AP

Gordon, left, and a crew member spray each other with champagne in victory lane after Gordon won his fourth career Winston Cup Series championship on Nov. 18, 2001. Gordon won six races and had 18 top-5 finishes.
Greg Suvino, AP

Gordon was a guest on the "Late Show with David Letterman" on Feb. 18, 1997, two days after becoming the youngest Daytona 500 winner in history at 25 years, 6 months. Gordon's record was broken by Trevor Bayne in 2011.
Alan Singer, AP

Gordon celebrates after winning the Hanes 500 at Martinsville on Sept. 22, 1996. He finished the year second in the points standings. Gordon had 34 top-10 finishes and 21 top-fives in 31 races.
Steve Helber, AP